Against Darkness and Time, Just Another PMD Tale
by Noemie1500
Summary: A Skitty and Riolu pair up to broaden their horizons at the eminent Wigglytuff Guild. What will they find during their adventures? PMD World Building. Ch. 9 pending
1. Chapter 1: The Guild

The dawn sky began to show subtle hints of white and pink, gradually bleeding into the deep blue and purple hues of a fading night. A light storm had just passed by the previous evening, leaving glistening raindrops scattered among the canopy of trees that littered the hillside. Their branches beckoned forward, shrouding a long and winding staircase to the top. It was roughly carved, but precisely cut into the bedrock, each step almost the same steep height.

Riolu and I finally climbed to the top of those long series of stairs that led to the top of the hill. Before us, was our destination: the Wigglytuff Guild! There, long stakes were set into the ground, leading up to a large clearing with lit braziers and totem poles, carved with faces of Pokemon, both menacing and proud. Two immense banners stood tall, footprint runes declaring the name of the guild and the slogans it advertised. The tent behind it overlooked the morning-dyed cliff face; low-lying and wispy clouds arching over the silhouette of a giant Wigglytuff in an imposing manner, as if from a majestic artwork.

Looking behind me, I saw my partner's dumbfounded expression. Riolu's jaw stood agape when he saw it, his normally black and blue face turning pale with both features of fright and awe.

"...Wow." I remarked, trying to break the silence . "The guild leader must have been some narcissist to have his own figure as the tent entrance..." My voice trailed off as I craned my neck upwards, taking in the whole setting.

A pause, and then, "H-how imposing!", he stammered. He then proceeded to hide behind my tail, as if menacing shadows would jump out at any minute. His action provoked a sarcastic thought in my mind, because isn't the model Riolu supposed to be sassy and brave natured? Well, at least that's what I heard, but this guy seemed to be defying all my expectations. _At least, be a gentleman and lead the way…_

I stepped onto the grate right before the tent. A second of complete silence, and then suddenly, ringing alarms went off, flattening my pink ears against my skull. Below, I could hear someone cry, "Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!", and another reply, "Whose footprint is it? Whose footprint is it?", in a large, booming voice.

Of course, I was thinking things such as: ' _Sheesh, can't you be more subtle?'_ , and ' _You're yelling my ears off!'_ , all the while.

"The footprint is Skitty's! The footprint is Skitty's!" the first Pokemon answered, and after a few seconds of silence (not counting the blaring sirens blasting in the background), the metal bars of the entrance to the tent began to raise, making grinding and crunching sounds, the ground slightly trembling. I stepped off the grate, with a slight headache, and turned around. Riolu stood shivering several paces behind me where he had stopped, slack-jawed, and I impatiently motioned for him to stand on it.

He kept motionless, and one could see his paws and tail quaking. "Not again!" I groaned. Shaking my head, exasperated, I went around the grate, and pushed him with my head onto it.

"Come on, do we always have to go through this cycle again before you can do something by yourself?!" I half-coaxed him as if he was a stubborn mule.

Stunned, he roused himself from his stupor. "E-e-eh?! Where am I?" And then he jumped, cringing, as the voices underneath him began to shout. His instincts kicked in, and he raised his paws, ready to fight the imaginary enemies. I sighed, waiting by the shady entrance of the tent, wondering why I had to go through with this so early in the morning.

He bounded towards me, still a bit apprehensively, and I looked up. _Hey! Why are you smiling like a buffoon!_ Embarrassed although no one else was here, I shook my head and used my tails to double-slap him.

Entering the tent, we could see sophisticated inner furnishings lining the walls, illuminated by soft light from the morning sun in cut holes on the sides. Well, the furnishings were really just some more decorative banners, and a couple signs pointing to a large hole in the solid floor. Looking more closely, the hole was covered with a deep brown manhole, shiny indents spaced equally around the cover.

And before us, was a small, brown-furred rodent of a Pokemon waiting, with two large buck teeth and round beady eyes. He quivered, as did Riolu- _ah, you scaredy-cat_ -, and kneeled nervously, his teeth clattering as he introduced himself.

"Hallo, i-it's by golly nice to meet new visitors", he stuttered. "B-bidoof's the name, and I'm a rookie apprentice at M-mister Wiggly's!"

Riolu, at that time, suddenly recovered from Bidoof's modest and amiable personality, finally took the lead. He coughed, still a bit jittery, "I'm Riolu, and this is my partner Nayuki! We're here to apply as an exploration team at this guild."

Bidoof seemed genuinely surprised at Riolu's statement. "B-by golly! How great of you two to come see our guild to become adventurers!" I could just see stars dancing in his eyes. He excitedly grabbed our paws while standing on his hind feet, balancing precariously, and shook them vigorously. Turning around, he tackled a wooden lever at the end of the tent, and I and Riolu felt a tremor.

"Wo-oah!", we both exclaimed, as the manhole creaked, sections sliding into one another until the thing disappeared into the side of the floor, revealing a flame-lit staircase, winding downwards into the cliffside. Entering after Bidoof and my partner, his gaze now filled with excitement instead of apprehension, I felt a sense of anxiety well within me.


	2. Chapter 2: Wigglytuff, Team Registration

I, Riolu, and Bidoof finally reached the bottom of the set of stone stairs, which led into a large, airy, and well-lit enclave. There were many square windows cut into the east wall, leaving the morning sunlight to fill the space. From our vantage point, we could see that there were many corridors webbing out from the enclave, making it seem like the hub of the guild. There was also a lot of activity so early in the morning, with multiple exploration and rescue teams moving between the corridors and past our group, going to the floor above, where we had earlier glimpsed a room with bulletin boards and job requests.

A Croagunk was chuckling to our right, in a stall that was fashioned into the enclave wall, stirring a bubbling pot and juggling items that a Raichu and a Pichu were giving him.

A Chansey and an Audino, both of whom I recognized worked at the daycare and the hospital in Treasure Town by their signature red-patterned smocks and nurses hats, were giving a check-up to a Starly with a broken wing, his beak turned in a grimace as they prodded it with medical tools and then proceeded to chant the move [Heal Bell] on him, emitting a green glow as it alleviated Starly's condition.

To our left, was a group of Pokemons, likely those participating in the guild's daily morning routine, led by a bright-eyed and squawking Chatot. His bright tropical plumage was of something one would find from the Southern Islands, overshadowed by something vibrantly pink behind him, whom I immediately recognized was the figure represented on the tent; Guildmaster Wigglytuff! Although his ears were wilted downwards, and a quite audible snoring could be heard, his eyes were wide open. Looking at the guild members, they didn't seem fazed at all, their expressions illuminated in cheering. ' _Was that a normal thing?'_ , I thought to myself.

"AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

The chorus faded, and many of the members began to disassemble, some wandering back to their rooms with bleary eyes, others brushing past us towards the job room.

Chatot immediately whisked around to face the guildmaster, and shook him roughly, urgently whispering, "Psst, guildmaster, wake up! The morning cheers have already ended!" The guildmaster paused his snoring for just a moment, before using an arm to wave Chatot away, but actually whacking him back like a rock from a slingshot, embedding the poor bird into the far wall. He struggled uselessly, squawking. "G-guildmaster! Hey! Someone, someone get me out!"

The guildmaster continued snoring, muttering, "Just another hour….zzz…"

A Machoke who was coming down the staircase behind us when it happened, saw the poor Chatot in the wall, sighed and turned around. There was a bunch of tools on his belt, and I immediately felt sorry for the construction worker. His work was certainly cut out for him. I then asked Bidoof, who was nervously trying to decide between helping Chatot or following the Machoke upstairs, "Does this happen often?" He nodded, a bit embarrassed.

"Hahahaha….. Our guildmaster is quite a character, y-you s-see…"

I stepped a little bit further away from Wigglytuff.

We then edged around Wigglytuff towards the wall, and began pulling at Chatot's wings. Turning my head, Wigglytuff was splayed out on the floor, a bubble forming from his nose. _Wow. How versatile is this guy?!_ We finally pried Chatot loose, and he fell in a heap, huffing.

"Well thank you, kind Pokemon", he stammered, getting back up. "Now that I've seen you two, weren't you two the ones who were up at the grate this early in the morning? Quite admirable." Dust coated his once vibrant plumage.

Riolu and I stepped up. "Yes. We're here to apply as apprentices!", Riolu intoned excitedly.

Chatot nodded once, brisk and terse. He proceeded to hop over and open the guildmaster doors with his wings, which was located next to the large and open-lit window. They were sturdy and heavy things, reaching to almost touch the ceiling with their height, and gilded with gold and silver around the edges. It must take a large amount of strength to push them open.

"Please wait in here for a moment, while I go," - he motions towards Wigglytuff- "prompt the guildmaster." He turned to Bidoof, and whispers a bit conspicuously, his exasperation showing on his inflection. "Go get me that long stick- you know, _that_ one." Bidoof nodded, and scurried off. He smiled warily at us and hopped over to the guildmaster.

After a few minutes of cursing and prodding, Wigglytuff and Chatot entered the chamber. It was pretty much covered in party decorations and perfect apples, except for an old desk in the center of the room, a Joy Globe gently spinning on its axis on top.

I didn't think the guildmaster would have such a thing. An item such as the Joy Globe was obviously very rare, to be found in the deepest and most remote dungeons! It was a sign that the guild might actually be more prestigious than we thought.

Wigglytuff was broadly grinning, singing ~Happy Friends, Happy Friends~, while Chatot was obviously not quite happy. He held a broken stick in his wing, likely, one of many. They stopped before us, and Wigglytuff bowed. "Friendly friends", he giggled, "Welcome to our esteemed guild!

He bent down, beginning to tremble, and Chatot backed up a step, covering his eyes with a wing. *YooooOOOOM...TAH!* A light exploded from his palms, with a large whoosh, and me and Riolu were blinded. When we recovered our eyesight, still slightly cringing, Wigglytuff was holding an ornate chest. It clicked and sprang open, revealing two bronze pins, with blue sapphires set in a locket at the center.

"These are your explorer badges" squawked Chatot. "When you complete a mission, these can be used to teleport you back to the guild." He glared intensely at us and then warned, "Don't you dare lose it. These cost a fortune to imbue by the psychic Alakazam, and we can't afford to replace them for every mission."

We stuttered our thanks and nodded and bowed, and he pinned them to two red scarves, then walked up to us and wrapped them around our necks. Contrary to its gaudy appearance, up close, it was very warm and comforting. The material was pretty good. I looked to my left, and Riolu was crying tears of joy.

Wigglytuff also took out a Treasure Bag and Wonder Map, his sing-song voice lifting the heavy mood. "These are yours too, for both storing items and visiting dungeons!" They stepped back, and Chatot flapped his wings. "Alright, now that you two are officially part of our guild, we need a team name! Do you guys have anything in mind?"

Riolu stepped up before piping, "We will be Team Crossroads!" I paused, and then nodded slowly in agreement, looking away. We went over it, well, Riolu went over it last night, in the inn. He was so enthusiastic about it I didn't bother to argue. It wasn't my preferred, but it didn't matter to me. Honest. "Team Riot", I coughed under my breath.

Wiggly nodded, and again with a giant flash and a *YOOM-TAH!*, motioned for us to check out our badges. Carefully inscribed around the sapphire jewels, was our team name.

Chatot coughed, and after we looked up, began to inter us in guild duties.

"...And finally, tomorrow we will begin your first apprentice mission. We like to ramp things up quickly, so we are bringing a mentor to supervise. I hope he'll be to your liking. Now...", he turned, pushing open the door, "I and the guildmaster must reconvene our daily meeting. You two should go explore Treasure Town, and meet with the other guild members. Now shoo, shoo." He pulled out an intricate watch, squawked in alarm, and pushed us out. and while closing the doors, we could hear him say, "The town meeting begins in an hour, Guildmaster! Don't fall asleep again!", and Wiggly's deep snoring.


	3. Chapter 3: A Party?

"Well that was a new experience for me." said Riolu as we began to climb back up the guild stairs. _Huh? What was that even?_ , I thought to myself. Is the guild we signed up too eccentric, or did we miss the right place?

"I don't know about this..." My mouth twisted in a frown. "We did register already, but are we sure this is the right place? You know there are plenty of good guilds around Treasure Town anyhow. There was no need to rush so early in the morning."

"Come on," my friend urged. "Blastoise's guild is a water type guild only, Mightyena's guild is just full of snobs who treasure hunt every day and cause a ruckus in town, and Rhyperior's guild is basically acting the town smith! They don't adventure to good dungeons at all... You know Wigglytuff's guild is the best! They go out on guild expeditions all the time!"

"What about Dusknoir's guild, and Lucario's guild? Both of them occasionally go on expeditions, and are just as good as Wiggly's guild. They are probably less eccentric, as well. There's a reason why the three are named the Big Three."

I backtracked for a moment. "Wait… If they are part of the Big Three, then I suppose they are also as eccentric as 'Tuffs...darn it." I fell back, a bit miffed. _Was there anybody normal?!_

Riolu sniffed. "Well... I suppose they were also close picks," he shifted his tail back and forth, tickling my nose. "But, Dusknoir really gives me the creeps. He only has one eye, and I swear, it's always following me around when I walk past near him!" He turned around. "And Lucario. Even if he's my father, I won't let him show me up! Even if I do something important, all the others will say, 'Oh, as expected of Lucario's son'! Therefore, where else can I get the most fame? Here, that's my best bet!" He crossed his arms and stopped.

I sighed, and nudged past his blue fur. "Well, whatever. So picky." I then turned my head, bumping into something green, and looked up. It was a Chikorita, with a sprouting leaf on her head and green stubs around her neck, which were partially covered with a blue scarf and a exploration team badge. It read 'Team Leaf Storm', emblazoned in gold.

 _A gold Adventurer's badge? Wow, she must be part of a strong team,_ I enthused.

"A Skitty? How rare to see one in these parts," she said with a sonorous voice, soft and lilting. A slight accent made it subtle that she was not from Treasure Town, or its hinterland. _Maybe she was from Happy Outlook, or Mystifying Forest?_ I was reminded of an explorer encyclopedia that I read, years ago. Back then, I was still caught up in Riolu's enthusiasm, who pushed me out the door of his house next door to explore the local caves, aptly named Crystal Caves for their abundance of natural amethyst and quartzite.

Vines reached out to keep me from falling down as I tripped on the ledge of the staircase. "How do you do? I'm Chika. Are you a new exploration team?" She glanced behind me at Riolu.

"Ah, yes. We actually just got initiated today, really," I mumbled.

Her eyes widened in surprise and delight. "Really? It's very nice to meet the both of you!" She began to vigorously shake our paws with her extending vines. "What are our two newbies' names?"

I tittered. It was only several hours, but another happy-go-lucky Bidoof had already shown up! "My name is Nayuki, and this is my partner Riolu." Motioning behind me in the torchlight, Riolu bowed. "Nice to meet you."

Chikorita paused for a moment. "Riolu... Riolu... I'm sure I've heard of that name in Treasure Town... Oh!" She looked up, eyes shining. Yup. Just another Bidoof. "Aren't you related to the guild leader Lucario? He's almost on par with Wigglytuff's guild in terms of prestige!"

Riolu look beleaguered. "I am. If you can excuse us, can you please make way? Although my mother and I just recently moved in, I would like to return home and explore Treasure Town with Nayuki here. Please understand." He pet my head, which kind of ticked me off. Was he treating me like a little kid?! I bit it, and he yowled, holding his throbbing paw. He glared at me and I responded in turn.

Chika, sporting a humored grin, moved to the left. "Hahaha, sorry.. I got carried away for a moment. Please, go on ahead. But if you guys see us at the mess hall later tonight for dinner, I want you to meet my partner, Picky! He's a Prinplup."

We nodded, bemused, and after saying goodbye, arrived at the entrance of the tent, illuminated by the afternoon sun. The temperature was by that time much warmer, and I shivered, shaking off the cold, left remnant by the wind.

"Although you were such a scaredy-Caterpie this morning, you're sooo enthusiastic now." I enthused. Riolu gave me a death glare. "Shut your trap." I could see the slight blush behind his blue fur.

Before us, was a scene previously hidden by the thick canopy of trees, which had previously covered the path upwards. Layers of dense forest extended out from all directions below a wispy, azure sky. In the west, was the walls of Treasure Town, which broke upon the waves of the canopy. Large and stumpy rock formations could be seen around us, like stalagmites, also shadowing the treeline with their enormous height. It was then, we realized, that the guild was carved out from the largest rock formation!

And past Treasure Town, past the shivering swells of luscious green, was the vast sea, to the south and to the west. The tides from this distance still seemed large, engulfing a good deal of my vision, and leaving me with a peaceful feeling, the scent of the sea tickling my nostrils. Which was odd, because I absolutely hated water. My favorite environment was nestled in warm fur besides a nice fire. Brr. The chill from the wind up here was getting to me.

Our paws going down the steep steps; a commotion could be heard from all the way in town. Balloons, which was a rare sight in our past home, fluttered in the sky among the Wingull and Drifloon mail carriers, some popping as they got too near and scaring the poor Pokemon.

"I wonder what's going on down there." I mumbled.

"Maybe there is a celebration going on?" Riolu responded.

Several smokestacks rose from the center of the town, drifting lazily along the sky. A Wingull dove into a plume, and emerged, blackened with soot.

We descended the staircase, and a legion of Machop, Timburr, and other fighting-types of Rhyperior's guild were bringing in bundles of wood and decorations from the Crossroads. Beyond them, the great unknown, the main gateway to the rest of the continent, to mystery dungeons and other settlements.

Weaving through the crowd of apprentices and swinging pieces of lumber, I noticed a Spinda, with her spiral patterns splayed on her body and her distinct teeter. Behind me, Riolu gazed longingly at the bulging muscles of the apprentices, until he got whacked in the head as a Mienfoo dropped a beam and turned around to pick it up. He soon quickly caught up when he realized the wave was a sea of potential concussions.

I waved to the Spinda, who soon noticed, tottering over to us.

"Hello ma'am, do you know what's going on today?" I politely asked.

She murmured something unintelligible, and held her arms up in the air, as if calling something. I instinctively sensed something Wigglytuff-like, and stepped back quickly. Spinda began trembling uncontrollably, until a supersonic shout exploded from her. "IIIIIII-ITSSS AAA PARTAAAYYY!"

Ugh. My ears were pretty much blown off, and Riolu, as well as many of the nearest apprentices fell over, stunned. Bodies collided with bodies, and then by mass domino effect, a vast crowd was found heaped on the ground. Spinda's [Hyper Voice] caused a fiasco! My vision flickered for a moment, and I wobbled, disoriented from the blast of sound. I felt a hand on my scruff, and I looked up and saw a towering Ludicolo, face curved in a tutting face towards the Spinda.

"Hey, hey, Shirley. No need to go crazy for the crowds yet," he intoned with a knowing smirk. "Save it for our act, our act! Don't ruin the surprise just yet for our future guests."

Looking down on me, he then set me gently on the ground until I became steady on my trembling paws. "Now, my little petal, sorry for the trouble our boss has caused." His tone was soothing, almost enamoring. _This one was dangerous_ , the inner voice inside me cried. He looked towards the heap of bowled over Pokemon. "Sorry, sorry," he drawled to them, with a heavy accent. Winking casually, he leaned closer to my face, unerringly close. "Our little band of ragtags are opening a shop near the crossroads. Oh, there will be drinks, shops, and many parties!"

He released me, and flicked Spinda in the forehead. As she fell down, fainted, he caught her and flung her on his wide, arching back. _H-huh? Doesn't she look like a sack of Razz berries?_ As he turned back, he called out. "The name's Cal! See you at the festival for our grand opening!" Looking at his turned shoulder, I noticed a large red flower on his hat, above the conked Spinda. It moved, and to my amazement it was a Bellossom, woken from the earlier fracas. She blinked, and waved her arms. The trio vanished among the crowd heading towards town.

"Huh? A festival?" Riolu was intrigued at the prospect. We stopped a Makuhita straddling a Tauros, and he told us that the biannual Exploration festival would begin in a couple weeks, at the end of the waning month. There would be competitions on who could discover new dungeons, and lots of team and guild battles. Lots of guilds would be prospecting for new recruits at this time, he said, the Tauros whipping his tail impatiently as the flow parted around the group. The top guilds would offer incentives and rewards for the winners and those who perked their interest. Apparently, many from other villages and towns would come over to participate and revel in the festival.

"Hmm," Riolu said, bemused. "Perhaps we came to register a bit too early. My mother didn't say anything about the festival, however. I wonder if dad neglected to tell us about this...oi, this is pretty important!"

I stopped him right there. "Of all things, I'd have to say your dad is probably one of the most forgetful people I've ever met. Didn't he leave for a guild expedition one time, and came back in the afternoon with loaves of bread from the local supermarket? He completely forgot about the expedition, and when the second in command, Charizard, flew in the next day, man, was he toasted!"

Riolu shivered. "Yeah... urgh, you made me remember something bad." In his eyes, I saw the reflection of the memory; the house was on fire, half the town wall was torn down, and my mother was beating the Groudon into the two of em...

"She could be the guild leader with her monstrous strength. But well, she has you, and I doubt she's reluctant to live the peaceful life." I paused, and recanted my statement, "Don't **ever** , tell her I said that.", silencing him with a glare.

He then nodded in agreement at my words.

"Alright, let's explore Treasure Town!"


	4. Chapter 4: Treasure Town I

Treasure Town is currently the center of activity on the continent. In comparison with the other Pokemon settlements, which are all nestled in enclaves along the continent, Treasure Town is by far the newest, with a history spanning back at least several decades. It was also the most alluring, with promises of exploration and glory, granted by the prestigious guilds that had gathered in this frontier town.

However, it wasn't like the other settlements were without note.

Such as the famed Steelix City in the deep reaches of the Northern Desert, known to reach almost as high as Temporal Tower, and fashioned from strong alloys of iron that never corroded. It is cited to have the most advanced technology of the day, with fantasies such as electronics, automobiles, and gizmos that did every imaginable thing in reality, thanks to the emergence of Porygon, the master purveyor of all things hi-tech.

Or the primeval Crystal Fountain, shaped and formed over the period of thousands of years to create a natural settlement made of precious stones and minerals. It was guarded by the willpower of the Lake Trio, Azelf, deep in Crystal Crossing. It was thanks to his mental powers that made the city prosper and flourish, as a center of trade in orbs found so prevalently in the exploration team's toolkit.

Of course, there were many other places in the wide Pokemon world, including that of the Sky Stairway, Shaymin's Village, Marine Resort, and Zero Isle Residency. But these fantastical locations would be a story of another time.

Huh? Why do I have knowledge of such things? Well, it was especially because of these tales of outlandish wonders, and the adventures that accompanied them, that fueled my and my partner's desire to become a Pokemon Exploration and Rescue Team. If anything, I want to someday visit the top of Temporal Tower, sanctuary to Dialga and the infamously once-stolen time gears. I relish the thought of viewing the wide expanse of the Hidden Land, and feeling the wind sweep across my fur. This topic had been a source for occasional body rolls across the floor. But I digress.

When I and Riolu arrived at the entrance to Treasure Town, swept along with the current of visitors and guild members alike, we were confronted with giant stone walls that towered over even the largest Onix. Although inconspicuous from the guild entrance, here it stood high above the canopy of trees that rung around it, at least thirty feet in height, truly making it impassable to even the strongest ground assaults. Sentry Bisharps watched keenly on the battlements of the walls, surveying the crowds that were pushing to enter the gates of the front entrance.

The gates, of course were enormous as well, made of sturdy oak that was taken from as far as the Treeshroud Forest in the east. A Nidoqueen and Nidoking stood at the entrance, burly muscles flexing as they allowed lines of Pokemon to enter as they checked through the Magnezone guards.

The Magnezone were truly the policing force in all the major Pokemon settlements, coming from the well esteemed Mag-Guild of Steelix City. The Mag-guild trained Magnezone and their evolutionary counterparts, Magnemite and Magneton, through rigorous regimens to become upstanding sheriffs and to reign in criminals of all shapes and sizes.

The Magnezone patrol, roughly increased in number for the duration of the festival, quickly acknowledged us and shooed us past the gates. We earlier had left under their supervision to Wiggly's guild, so it was a trivial matter to remember our faces. A Skitty and a Riolu, after all, were rare, even within such a high-traffic place like Treasure Town!

Our entrance into town was almost unnoticed by the bustling Pokemon that roamed the streets, carrying decorations, going shopping, eating delicious pastries, and so forth and so on. There was a myriad of things to do here! We snuck past the main avenue, which was lined with shops and stalls of all kinds, selling memorabilia and trinkets, and entered a more quiet street.

To clarify the layout of the settlement, Treasure Town has three main entrances to its heart, and that's the northern, southern, and eastern entrance, the last leading directly to the crossroads. Each is well guarded, and painstakingly well maintained. Any litterers will receive strong-handed retribution from the residents! From these main entrances there are three major paths to the center, and one extending farther west, to end at Sharpedo's Bluff, which overlooks the sea.

That side is a major tourist attraction, according to Riolu's mother. Apparently auntie and Riolu's father had visited a long time ago. But it's not like I'm insinuating that she's old or something! Auntie will beat the Snorlax into me if she found out I thought of her that way…

Although Treasure Town was a frontier settlement founded not long ago, it was well planned, yet there are many secluded areas within the walls with small groves or hidden shops.

Well anyways, from what I already know with my extensive travel knowledge (which I keep in a journal in preparation for these very days), the four major avenues form quadrants, with the eastern two being the commercial and civil areas, and the western two the residential. At the center is a clearing the size of Tiny Meadow, home to the two other guilds of the Big Three, Dusknoir's and Lucario's, as well as the town hall and local post station and other major buildings.

It was also here, that the smoke plumes originated from, emanating in dense columns from a hole in the top of a giant red tent, which was visible even from our secluded area.

I and Riolu watched the smoke stacks slowly continue puffing out under the shade of the grove, sitting on the rim of a Lumineon fountain. It was very relaxing, and with the smell of fried squid floating over to tickle my nostrils, became quite hard to not drift away into a daylight reverie. I laid my head on Riolu's lap, his soft fur becoming a nice pillow for me to nap on. He stroked my head a couple times, and looked out down the street, elegantly lined with mature maple trees, which were indigenous to the locality. Their leaves branched outwards, forming a deep layer of foliage, with stark patches of blue sky peeking through.

 _Aah, yes. Today was certainly a good day._

One short catnap later, I was roused to the shifting of Riolu's paws, as he set me down gently against the worn stone of the fountain. A breeze ruffled my fur, and my stomach growled, just a bit. _Darn._ I had hoped Riolu didn't notice, but he began to smirk knowingly and waltzed off to the nearest food stall, maintained by an ancient Slowbro. I was a bit ambivalent, torn between conflicting thoughts of ' _come back, my warmth!'_ , and ' _yeah, go get me something nice!'._

It's not like I was spoiled often or anything.

 _H-hey! Don't look at me like that!_

Riolu came back, holding two shish kebabs of squid and alternating berries. He waved it over my nose, and I twitchingly tried to snap at it. He held it away, entertaining my frustrations at such delectables so near, yet so far from my salivating mouth. I grudgingly got up, and glared at him. _Uuu, why must you torture me like this?!_ He chuckled, and flung it up in the air, and I tried grasping it with my paws, almost fumbling.

I growled, half the end of the skewer in my fangs, before stopping, elegant steps ending behind me. Turning around, I found myself facing a smiling Espeon. He was a shade of exotic velvet, and a red gem, polished to a brilliant shine, was set into his forehead. A monocle, precariously balanced in front of his right eye, was gold rimmed, possibly an expensive trinket of some kind.

"Huhu…"


	5. Chapter 5: Treasure Town II

"Excuse me, do you need something?", Riolu asked.

"No, no, I was just intrigued at your droll affectations…" His slur gave off a tinge of genteelness, tail swishing in rhythmic motion, almost like a pendulum.

If not for his refinery, I might have not held back baring my fangs. His presence made my hair raise, so he's definitely not a good guy!

He smiled as he scanned us, nodding and muttering to himself. As if finishing an evaluation, he made an affirmative grunt and took out a yellowed parchment scroll from thin air.

"Anyways, would you two like to participate in a little competition? I'm a scouter for potential talents-", he emphasized this part with a click, "-in the battle royale that the Exploration Festival Committee is hosting!" He bowed his head gracefully for deep effect.

"So why are you out on the sideroads, stalking other Pokemon?", Riolu retorted, obviously not convinced. An imaginary sword pierced Espeon's chest in my mind.

A nervous sweat broke out on Espeon's forehead. "U-uuh, what are you talking about?" The street vendor gave him a suspicious glare, leaving the Sun Pokemon to wither under his gaze. He cleared his throat. "O-of course, I'm scouting others to participate! I-I saw you two earlier head this way, so I thought…"

He halted, realizing that he had dug himself into a deeper hole. Riolu stepped between him and me, arms open. "And?" He probed harshly. The imaginary sword twisted in Espeon's gut even further.

"A-ahem! That's all to it, really! Do you want to hear my proposal or what?"

"...Sure. Hit me with your best shot." Riolu conceded, still suspicious.

"Alright. So I assume you pair know that the biannual Exploration Festival is around the corner, and that many competitions accompany it, yes?" We both nodded. "Well, so one of the attractions that the Committee will be offering is the Singles Battle Royale of which will feature many prestigious guild leaders…including your father, Lucario."

"Huh? You know my father, Espeon?" Riolu lowered his guard a smidge.

Espeon took the bewilderment in stride, specious arrogance surfacing in his flashing eyes. "Of course. Esteemed Lucario one of the board members! He was the one who specifically suggested this competition for the festival. I believe that personally _you_ would benefit from this, little one. Here." He handed the parchment to Riolu.

"I'm not a 'little one'.", Riolu growled, snatching the parchment.

"Next week, there will be preliminaries to advance into the main round." He waved a paw in Riolu's face. "Win two out of three to pass; this document is a waiver to the participation fees at the admissions booth. I expect good things from you, little one." Moving in closer, he whispered into Riolu's ear. "Do well for your little missy, okay?"

"W-W-what?!" Riolu shoved the grinning Pokemon away. blushing madly. "Don't say such nonsense. Shoo, shoo!"

He swiped at Espeon, who ducked and chuckled. "Yes, yes, child. Have funnnn~!"

All the while, I was quite intently observing the dialogue bouncing between the two of them. Riolu turned around, and noticing my bemused expression, he stammered and looked away. "It was nothing, okay!"

 _Mmhmm. Aight. Whaaatever you say._

We paused for a time, the chirping of Fletchlings and Starlies resounding among the canopy.

"...Let's go."

"...Yeah."

Riolu and I left the clearing to continue exploring Treasure Town.

We wound along the well cut alleyways and streets, passing hordes of Pokemon and peddlers toting wares; an exceptionally large group surrounded the mart operated by the Kecleon brothers by the edge of the northwestern quadrant.

Having had been in the business for almost a decade, the two brothers have expanded their wares for adventurers and casual shoppers by a prodigious amount. The small stall they once operated became a booming business, having twice renovated into a two story building set with high shelves of produce, orbs, seeds, and TMs. It was not unlike the department stores one might find in the city.

Cutting between crowds, we wandered, thoroughly lost, until Riolu recognized the flowery shrubbery of his new house. It was a basic construction, quaint abode, with sturdy mud brick walls overlaid with colorful red furnishings. The houses in Treasure Town are often of similar size, built on the bigger side to accommodate the larger Pokemon and their family sizes. Of course, there are often exceptions to the rule like Snorlax or Onix, but they like to live in their own specialized settlements. The ones that do have a penchant for society though, request dorms at the edge of the settlement, which are often large enough to reach the top of the walls in height.

The builders of all these houses; however, share the Dugtrio guild, whose builders deftly and ingeniously uses novel construction techniques like [Earth Power] or [Dig] or [Bulldoze] to prepare the varied types of housing for Treasure Town and its vicinity. Wigglytuff's guild is an example of this; its floors being carved from the dense sandstone of the sedimentary intrusion by the original members of the Dugtrio guild.

It is also known that Rhyperior's guild was also completely dug out underground, a labyrinth of paths stretching out from underneath Treasure Town. It might be as large as municipality itself, and several explorers have taken the initiative to attempt to map out the whole project. Lucario's guild often uses the underground facilities installed in the domain, so the two groups have close bonds.

We entered stealthily through the front door, only to be stopped by auntie, who was waiting just within. Ordinarily I'd say it was just coincidence, but detecting presences with aura is cheating, you know! Her name is actually Sandy, but auntie sounds more informal… She was quite worried, a crease line or two appearing on her forehead. Wearing a bright smock, deep teal, she was apparently preparing for supper and was distressed that we hadn't returned for lunch. After giving a harsh lecture to us- I was having much fun watching poor Riolu wither under her gaze-she asked,

"So, what were you two doing so early this morning?"

We replied by describing all the events that transpired today, from signing up with Wigglytuff's guild to meeting with Spinda and Ludicolo, and traversing the town and meeting with Espeon. She arched her eyebrows at the mention of Lucario suggesting the event, and after we finished, she said, "I see… I'll be having a stern talk with your father when he comes back, Riolu.."

A shiver instantaneously went down our backs, and a certain Lucario working somewhere else.

"So, anyway, are you two staying tonight or what? I see you're all so eager to leave just the day after you arrived at our new house…" She made a mock tearing up.

"Ah… I forgot." Riolu clutched at his head. "Sorry, mom...we won't be here tonight. We'll be sure to come back tomorrow, I promise!" He started dragging my paw. "Come on, Nayuki, we have to be back by sunset or Chatot will be pissed!"

"Ehhh…. It's a long way… Can't I just sleep here, in my nice, comfy bed?"

"Rejected! Go, lazy!" He dragged me by the scruff

"See you two later…. If you see your father, Riolu, hit him on the head for me, okay?"

A glaring chill returned behind my back. We didn't dare turn around until the house was out of sight.

After stopping several times, once to buy a town map (a hot item for obvious reasons), another to visit the Kangaskhan Storage and Duskull Bank in the commercial district and set up our adventurer accounts under our guild, which comes as an added benefit of being an exploration and rescue team, we finally arrived back at the entrance of the giant Wigglytuff tent.

"This is the second time today, but man, the guild leader is some narcissist…" Riolu affirmed my comment with a grunt.

Silence pervaded the clearing.

"Well… you go first."

"Why me!?"

"I went first last time. It's your turn now."

"Eehhh…. Nayuki, you really are cruel… Wait, why are you all the way back at the stairs?"

"It's too loud. I'll just sneak in when the doors open for you."

"Really… How harsh, leaving me all alone here." Riolu stood upon the grate, the sirens resounded across the clearing, and the gates once again churned up. I went ahead of the cringing Riolu with my tail held high to wait for him at the underground entrance. While Riolu came over, the grate suddenly swung back and Bidoof's head popped out of the ground, like a Diglett.

"Ah, yall… done yet with your tour of Treasure Town? The members are preparing dinner downstairs so hurry up, it's almost time for grub!"

We descended, and compared to the early morning bustle, afternoon was marked with guild members sweeping floors, dusting furniture and cleaning up. A solid rule for all guilds was 'Make your base presentable to all visitors!', although it was probably a different matter if it was in personal quarters… Riolu's dad was utterly useless without auntie, and any place he touched turned to soiled objects. He must've lived in a mystery dungeon!

When we reached ground floor, Bidoof turned around and faced us.

"Now that I notice it, you two haven't been notified of your dorm rooms yet, right?" We nodded. "Well then, I'll take it upon myself to guide our new adventurers!"


	6. Chapter 6: Guild Building and Supper

Turning right, we entered a lit passage deep into the caverns of the guild.

"Alright, where was it… Chatot said something about C-8, but the hallways down here are still confusing, even for me, golly… Ah! That's right, I forgot to tell you two about the guild organization. Lessee."

I flicked my ears at him from behind his back. _Guild organization? Is this place even more complicated than what we've already seen?_

"The top floor is the entrance. Yep yep! Then directly below that is the job room, where both the outlaw board and the job bulletin is located. Chimecho or Chatot can tell you more about that later, yessiree… After that is the second sublevel; where guildmaster's room is, the mess hall, and the first line dorms. There is a stairway at the end of the dorms- hold on, we almost passed it."

We passed a corner and were met with another stone staircase that led further down into the bedrock. From the dim light of the only window at the end of the main hall, I could see that it was even darker down there… I nudged Riolu.

"What do you know, Riolu, there might be monsters hiding underneath this floor, huh? They may come out from the darkness and pounce on you…"

I snickered as Riolu suddenly stopped and turned a more pallid shade of blue. Although I was also a bit nervous going down there for albeit different reasons.. The dark stairs gave an impression of being abandoned and neglected; is there anyone honestly taking care of this place?

"Mmm yes. follow me, we'll take these down to the next sublevel…" Bidoof droned on, leading the way. His legs were also slightly tensed as he descended, was he also scared?

"Down here are more dorms and storage rooms; we do have a little bit more funding than the other guilds, thanks to our esteemed guildmaster, so some of our facilities are found downstairs. We also have an underground passage to town hall, by golly!" He stopped and turned around, narrowing his eyes. "Don't tell anyone I told you that, okay? I only just found out, like, a couple days ago, so I'm not quite sure that I'm leaking classified info or not."

We dropped a floor, and stopped. In front of us was a carved map in the wall, lit by lanterns on each side. Bidoof took a minute or two to stare intensely at it, and then turned abruptly right. From what I could tell, there was something like a training room and a weight lifting room.

"The classification of the rooms are like this; I told you your rooms were C-8, right? Well C means the dorm sublevel, and 8 is the room number." We passed a dorm with the plate B-1 and Bidoof tapped lightly on it. "This is one example- all the dorms have plates by their entrance, you know?"

We found another set of stairs, descended, and after going a ways, Bidoof stopped with an 'aha!' He walked into a darkened room, which thankfully had a small window at its opposite side. It reflected dull light, outside was almost dark, the sun in the west barely above the horizon. Riolu went to it, and gasped. I padded over, and found myself looking several stories above the forest floor. _Despite all the levels we've descended, we're still this high, huh._

Bidoof, who had left and returned, held a small candleholder shaped like a Litwick in his hooves that he set on a hook on the earthen wall, and pointed to the side. There was a decent sized table there, barely large enough to fit through the doorway, and two mounds of hay stacked up.

"Our beds, huh." Riolu murmured. I was besieged with a despondent feeling. I prodded the mound with a paw. It was rough and scratchy. _Just great._

I reminded myself to add this grievance to the list of repayments-Riolu-owes-me.

"Alrighty, we got this set up to let's go back up to the main floor. I'm sure dinner should be ready by now. Gee, I'm hungry!" Bidoof's stomach rumbled.

Back upstairs, we were met with a crowd of Pokemon just milling around the mess hall. A pouting Chimecho was barring the way for the roiling group, some trying to barge in past her, others shouting less than amiably. It was about a minute or two before a certain loudmouth we heard at the entrance earlier this evening blast a couple guild members across the clearing: a Lotad striking the ceiling, a Buneary bouncing past us, and a pissed Pikachu landing on the unlucky Chatot's head, before an electric storm rocked the room. It didn't take long before the guildmaster put down the offender, [Double Slapping] the Loudred (I don't think any of us felt pity for him at all, really) into the floor.

Machoke's going to have an egg when he sees _that_ tomorrow.

After Wigglytuff arrived, all of us a bit frazzled, we went into the mess hall (excluding the buried offender) and before us was a massive log table filled with berries and cuisine of all sorts, dutifully protected by Chimecho. _To the cook, take all my poké!_ Everyone took a chair, or stump, and began helping themselves to the food. It tasted as delicious as it looked, and I was soon chomping with gusto. Bidoof sat across from us, besides a Sunflora and Corphish, both of whom were quite interested in knowing Riolu. Which was fine by me. Being famous is a large detriment to my happiness and self-indulgence. While he was dodging questions, Bidoof kindly engaged me into some small talk.

"Hey, hey! See those guys over there?" He nodded to the other end, where the Tuffs and Chatot were. It was a pair of Pokemon, surrounded by adoring guild members and a fluffy atmosphere. _What was this..._ "The Medicham and Lopunny over there, they are returning members of the guild, once graduated. The pair is part of a famous team called Team Charm, but their third member, Gardevoir, isn't at the guild at the moment. Anyways, Team Charm is a full fledged explorer team, raiding dungeons all over for treasure!" A supernova exploded in his eyes. _It's too bright! The naivete!_

"They graduated a long time ago, and you know what?" He leaned closer. "They say that the trio is Master Rank! It's close to the same rank as the guildmaster, golly. Yup, that's my goal- I want to hit Master Rank like them someday!"

 _Hmm. Our exploration team is.._ I took a look at the explorers badge on my scarf. "Normal rank, huh…" A burning desire was lit inside me. Let's make tomorrow count!

"Now look to our right."

At the closer end of the long table, was a group of towering giants, each moving with large and brusque movements. Their glares towards their food seemed cold, calculating, but their intentions were betrayed by rapid motion arm thrusts, grabbing and chomping apples in a frenzy.

"That's Team Bulldoze. The tall one with the green hide and thorn like protrusions is Tyranitar; he's kinda like a guardian of the guild. When he fights intruders or goes on missions, he gets really menacing, but he's really a kind guy inside. I once saw him protect an incapacitated Starly from a raging Gyarados- although don't tell him that I know that.

"The one besides him with the purple scales and horn is Nidoking. He's a brash guy but a real jokester. Sometimes on Friday nights he goes out to town to strum his ukulele in the streets. _Err…that sounds so absurd and whimsical that I can't even imagine it..._

"The last one, with the black stripes and snout is Krookodile. He's the brains and cruelty of the group. He has connections with many Pokemon in many places, and if you backstab him," Bidoof gulped, a paw making slashing motions at his neck, "Let's just say many don't come back to tell the tale."

I changed the subject. Bidoof almost looked like he was going to start a murder story. "Are the three that strong?"

"Well, their signature combo is [Earthquake]; when all three of them use it at once, they can decimate a whole forest, I've heard. So generally, yeah. They have a Hyper Rank, which is above the majority of experienced Pokemon exploration teams. The ranks go from Normal, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond, Super, Ultra, Hyper, and then Master. The guildmaster teams; however, have access to ranks even higher than that… I don't know what they are, but they should be for breathtaking accomplishments."

"So, what do we do to get to Master Rank?" Riolu interjected. Apparently he had been listening in on the conversation while dodging questions from the other two explorers.

"Well, uh… I suppose the general method is to do all sorts of missions, golly. Higher ranked missions give greater rewards and rank points to rise up, and that varies from E to star ranked, which are notoriously hard for our level."

"Are there any more teams we should know of?" Riolu questioned. I could vaguely guess his curiosity, as his goal was likely to pass those groups to the top, as well as his father.

"Well, there are many an established group, and several rookies here that you two still haven't met yet," pined Bidoof. "But it won't be long before you get acquainted with everyone. Some teams aren't here at the moment, as some missions can take up to a fortnight or longer to complete. Although you might not believe that, as we seem so full already." he added.

At that moment, I was forcefully strang- hugged- by a large leaf, one we had met earlier today. Chikorita was quite ecstatic about showing her partner; a sturdy looking Prinplup with a princely crown upon his head. It branched out like a trident with an alluring golden sheen, sparkling and shimmering- and no, it did not occupy my whole experience with him! He was polite, very modest right up until Chika dropped the forbidden P-word, when he abruptly went a full 180 and started pontificating that he was not bothered by what others served him, and that she was a moody and conniving plant who only looked out to increase her position. Their colloquy degraded into a shouting match, cheered on by the audience.

Well, it was an absurd situation like that.

After supper ended, Chatot called us down to the guildmaster room.

"Ahem. So I hope you two have enjoyed your first day at the guild...Tomorrow will be your first mission. All prompt and clear. Just to clarify, we'll be bringing in a more experienced guild member to supervise the mission, and after all's well and done you'll get a reward. Hmm… was there anything else I wanted to say? Don't be reckless. We've had many a newbie get scuffed up and had us clean up the medical bill. We don't _like_ medical bills." His head, at this point, cracked conspicuously, turning a hundred-eighty degrees like a Noctowl. It was probably meant as intimidation, but man, I think that was plain terrifying. "That's all." He finished, shooed us off, obviously still mortified, and shut the doors behind him with a boom.

And by the way, Wigglytuff was sleeping in his large and comfy chair this whole time. After we've been indoctrinated into the guild, it seemed that Chatot didn't even bother to hide the fact that our guild leader was playing Truant from his duties all day.

It took about half an hour to wind back through the dimly lit passages to our room. By then, the Litwick candle had almost snuffed out, so we promptly bedded down. It was a coarse and unpleasant experience, hay poking in the ears and nose and fur, eliciting sneezes that echoed through the corridors and annoyed retorts from the neighbors. A long while passed until the adrenaline of the day passed, and I finally fell asleep, amid the ambient snores of my partner.


	7. Chapter 7: Drenched Bluff I

The next morning, I was awakened to the dawn seeping in through the window, glancing off the trees outside. That, and the distant echoing of "UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!", all along the hallways. Geez. That guy is noisy no matter what time, is he?

Yawning, I padded over to the window to feel the wind ruffle through my fur, shaking off the hay that had stuck to it overnight. When I came to attention, Riolu wasn't around and his pile of hay had been all cleaned up. Which wasn't anything unusual, of course. He made it a habit to train so early in the day.

 _...Maybe I should go back to sleep._

An hour later, I was prodded and dragged kicking by Riolu to the commons. We ate a quick breakfast, dunked in the commons washbin, and met up with the rest of the guild members, participating in the guild cheers. I think I've begun to admire Tuffs, who was able to sleep during this time with his eyes open. Heading up to the second floor, Chatot and Bidoof met up with us and we waited for the mentor to come in. Oh, and a Piplup. There was another rookie participating in our mission.

During the wait, Chatot explained the request boards to us. The one on the left, the job bulletin board, was where the mundane missions were taken: delivering items, odd jobs, rescuing stray Pokemon who managed to wander into dungeons, and escorting others through dungeons. The one on the right, the outlaw notice board, contained the requests to catch villains and gangs who hole up in dungeons and throw them into the slammer. There were a lot of tall and shady characters on the list, including a Dusknoir and his Sableye, a scarface Manectric, and a red Gyarados. Mmm. The artist is good; these pictures look well done. I think we should do these quests, Riolu!

He glared at me. Scaredy-cat~.

Apparently, one of the guild members of the guild put up the requests on the board, a Dugtrio. Every morning he flips the bulletin from behind the wall- ooh, I want to see behind there -and pins up the missions. Although he isn't on duty today, according to Chatot. Something about Tuesday's being a personal holiday and singing on the beach. Wait, that last part is pretty incongruous...

Our mentor came in a bit later in the morning, and when he entered, everybody just stopped and looked at the stairs. It was a glamorous Delcatty! He wore a flagrant red scarf around his shoulders, touting it with flair. Huh? He's so cool! I can just feel the suave oozing out of him.

While everyone (including me) was just staring at Delcatty, Chatot harrumphed and pulled a request off the job bulletin board and gave it to him. Aww, is he jealous?

He glanced at it, and coughed, getting the our and the other rookies' attention. "Ahem," he began, a soothing droll rolling over us. "As for today's mission, it is prudent for me to remind you all that..."

Looking up, I could see Delcatty's silky mane, which hung down from his neck like a vibrant violet noticed, and nodded at me, flashing a gleaming smile.

My face flushed beet red. _Ahhhh! He's looking at me, he's looking at me!_

"Oi, Nayuki.", Riolu prodded me, a concerned expression on his face. "You're swooning for him..."

I jolted out of my delusions.

"H-huh?! No I wasn't! I-I swear!"

I hit him with my tail.

"Anyways", Delcatty continued, his purring voice sounding slightly enthused at the comical little situation, "We'll be voyaging to the Drenched Bluff area today, to give our client these,"- flashing out a packet of silver gummis -"for today's trainee mission. The rank is E rank, so it shouldn't be particularly hard even if I let you all loose. Any concerns?"

"No, Mister Delcatty!", our group, consisting of all guild rookies: me, Riolu, Bidoof, and Piplup, cheered after he finished talking, for no particular reason. Yup, he just was that charismatic. Piplup, I and Riolu didn't particularly know, but it seemed that Bidoof had a pretty good relationship with her. She curtsied to us with exaggerated flair, and looked away. Never to notice us again. Geez, that's cold!

Nevertheless, we gathered our explorer packs, and began climbing up the grand staircase that led aboveground of the guild. Exiting past the front confines of the tent, we were blinded partially by the light outside with the sun flaring above us. Our first mission as Team Crossroads had begun!

Drenched Bluff is one of the closet mystery dungeons to Treasure Town; second only to Beach Cave, and only a skip away from the crossroads.

We took a path from the southern entrance to the beach, between the rocky walls and sand dunes we easily found a path leading east into marshland. This marshland surrounds where a branch of Serenity River meets the ocean, forming a small estuary.

Here is where the beginner rookies train against real life threats, and grind for levels. It doesn't have the hordes of Kabuto and their lethal poison-injecting pincers one might find in Beach Cave (an unfortunate drawback that several newbies have painfully encountered firsthand), and of the hostile Pokemon it does have, these are quite easy to deal with, like the soft-shelled Shellos and the conspicuous Chingling, whose orbs make them noticeable from a floor away. Those that might pose a threat, Lileep and Anorith, are uncommon and quite docile, unlike their extremely hostile counterparts in the infamous Silver Trench, which is home to Lugia and contains tremendous ninety-nine floors. Although that's all the way in another region.

Anyways, our group marched into the marshland and waded (The water was shallow enough that even a hydrophobic Pichu could walk through it without difficulty) into the estuary. It was in the center of this feature that we arrived at a delta. Located within the delta was the Drenched Bluff, a small series of interconnected fissures beneath the landform.

Sporting seven floors, each a new configuration upon arrival, the dungeon was a labyrinth for the average Pokemon. The packed mud and stone walls glittered mystically in the darkness, lit only by luminescent weeds and holes from crevasses aboveground, leaking streams of water that pooled around our paws. Sounds of dripping echoed across fallen slabs of rock, resounding around us.

The scent of adventure! Action! Being lost in the wilderness!

Forget about that last one, although it happens much more frequently than you might imagine.

A rustling from the reeds behind us occurred soon after we entered, sending a shivers down my back, and all of us pivoted quickly to face the enemy. A pink face stared back at us from its hiding spot, slithering slowly out on its snail-like body. A Shellos!

"Aww, it's so adorable…" I ran up to it, and Riolu followed closely behind, saying, "Oi! Stop! That thing's dangerous!"

For you, maybe~

When I got close enough to it, its adorable little eyes narrowed and with startling speed, tried to tackle me. Using my tail to jump up like an Aipom, I easily dodged it- and the wild Pokemon slammed into Riolu, who was chasing from behind. _Kekeke._ I turned around smoothly and landed on top of the Shellos's soft shell, and with an [Assist] already powered up, I used [Force Palm] on the creature, instantly knocking it out.

I landed with a flourish and raised my paw.

"Success! I defeated a Shellos!"

I was suddenly grasped by the cuff by a tall someone, and looked up. Ah… It was Mr. Delcatty. He had a stern face, mouth slightly curled into a frown.

"Nayuki. Please do not run into danger again and sacrificing your partner to get the victory. Poor Riolu must be hurting right now, isn't he?"

A groan resided nearby from the downed pokemon.

"And Riolu, you must be more aware of the actions of your partner and the surroundings. The Shellos would not have gotten a [Tackle] on you if you were paying more attention."

The groan resided again.

"I only came back to tell you two to hurry up, Piplup and Bidoof have already entered the first chamber of the dungeon and are scouting it out. Get a move on, you two."

He dropped me, and nudged Riolu to his feet. While we paced along the damp walls, I nudged Riolu subtly.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"..."

"Sorry about that, Riolu. It won't happen again."

"...It better not. My chest hurts all over."

We caught up with the rest of the team, and made our way through the winding tunnels and rooms, looking for what Bidoof said would be a staircase on each floor. Meanwhile, Delcatty had sneakily disappeared, only leaving behind the statement that he would be observing unless something urgent happened. Hey, is this is what is called, guided teaching? Aren't you just leaving your rookies to fend for themselves, guildmaster?

Piqued by Bidoof's remark, Riolu asked, "Why is there a staircase on each floor? The dungeons aren't artificially made, right?"

"Well, the staircases aren't really staircases but more rather heaps of stones caused by a collapse in the ceilings. Sometimes we have to turn back because there are no ways upwards, or that we don't have the tools to climb upwards, like a ladder. So we have to keep plenty of rope in our explorer bags in case we need to navigate through a broken shaft.

"Although sometimes, there are previous adventurers who are in the same dungeon, and build stairs up for the next group. And there are traps, like pitfalls, which can drop a pokemon into a lower floor. It gets really complicated when you go to a unique place, like Sky Stairway, or the Bottomless Sea."

At the end of that explanation, Piplup paused at the vanguard. Her beak twitched, and her eyes strained against the faint illumination to make out any shadowy figures.

"Sshh! Something's coming."

We paused, all traces of our movement made negligible. What came around the corner slowly approached, sounds of clicking hitting the rough floor of stone. A further bit closer, and an Anorith appeared! Piplup tensed, and with a shrill cry, she yelled,

"Get him!"

She jumped, Bidoof jumped, I jumped, and Riolu all piled on the Anorith, which was then twitching madly. Under our combined weight, I doubted it could've done anything but shake, though. Is this what [Pound] does?

When we got off, the Anorith was still conscious, clacking its pincers at us. Its shell must be very hard, for a four-pokemon pileup to not knock it out. Riolu was about to jab at it with a [Force Palm], but suddenly, the pokemon jumped back and used [Screech], harshly rattling our ears.

It was then, that from the other side of the corner, a large rumbling could be heard. Fear showed in Riolu's eyes, and we all gulped nervously.

The Anorith had called for reinforcement!

"Monster house!", Bidoof backed up in fright.

"Quick!", shouted Piplup, urgency in her voice. "We have to stop them from mobbing us!"

"But our earlier attack didn't do enough damage the first time, how could we fight back?"

"We need a super-effective attack, Bidoof."

Riolu's eyes flashed. "I got it! Everyone, move back to the end of the tunnel! Anorith are weak to water moves, does any of you have one?"

"I have [Bubble!]"

"Good! Nayuki, copy Piplup's attack with [Assist], Bidoof, defend the front line with me!"

We ran to the end of corridor, growing clacks scurrying towards us from behind. It opened up into the previous open space, and Bidoof and Riolu stood in front, while I and Piplup stood from angles to hit from a distance. Almost simultaneously, a group of half a dozen Anorith rushed in, mandibles open wide in anger.

Riolu gave the command.

"FIRE!"

He jabbed a [Force Palm] at the first pokemon, knocking it back a couple feet, and it was suddenly blasted by [Bubble] from each side. It reeled, and collided with the next Anorith before Bidoof tackled it against the wall. It slumped, and didn't rise up again. Meanwhile, the other Anorith had recovered, and was racing towards me. Riolu was fending with another one, repeatedly punching it with [Force Palm].

I changed tactics, and meeting it head on, somersaulted over its back, and hit it with [Doubleslap] on the noggin, momentarily stunning it. Piplup's [Bubble] then collided from the side, knocking it into a waiting Bidoof, [Headbutt] on cue. It flew into a heap, unconscious.

We then went to Riolu, who was out of breath and pretty bruised by the [Fury Swipes] used by his opponent. Using [Assist] and [Bubble] again, we K.O.'d the pokemon he was fighting, and steadily took on the next one. After a succession of attacks, two Anorith were beaten down, and the last one took the opportunity to flee, after a well-placed [Bubble] knocked it out into the far end of the corridor.

"And don't come back, you scoundrel!", I exhumed, exhausted. Turning around, the rest of the team were on the ground, breathing roughly. Riolu was in the worst condition, cuts and scrapes all over his body. He laid down, and Bidoof fetched an Oran berry from the Treasure Bag, giving it to him. Eating heartily, Riolu sighed, and closed his eyes.

"Alright, now that the worst is over, we have to plan on what we're going to do next," Piplup declared. "We may have won that fight, but barely. If we get into another, it's likely that one of us or all of us may faint and fail the mission."

"Let's rest a moment," said Bidoof. "After that, the best plan is to go carefully onwards."

"He's not wrong," mumbled Riolu, eyes still closed. "We don't have a lot of options so far on stratagems, but I think that you and Nayuki stay in the middle, while I and Bidoof take the rear guard. Neither of us have any ranged attacks, so you two will be the rangers."

"...Alright." Piplup didn't seem fully satisfied with it, but after a few moments of thinking, she conceded, and about an hour later, we set off again.


	8. Chapter 8: Drenched Bluff II

After winding through the narrow passage where we first encountered the Anorith horde, we burst through into another room, this time more expansive than the last. Looking around, we could see a Lileep snoring in a corner, and items laying around.

Poké!

Apples!

Gummis!

"Wow, this is a real hoard!", I said, excited. "This is enough food for a while…. should we bring all this home with us?"

Bidoof replied, "Certainly. I daresay our Treasure Bags have enough room to store all of the loot, by golly. Make sure you don't wake up or bring in any enemy pokemon, okay?" He turned around to Piplup. "The request that Delcatty gave you, do you have it? What floor do we need to be on to find the client?"

"Hmm… it should be B4. The client is a Pidgey, so he'll seem quite out of place compared to any other dwellers in this dungeon."

"Ah!"

Everybody turned around to look at Riolu.

"I think I found the staircase you were talking about, Bidoof!" He pointed all the way at the other side of the cavern, at a gaping hole in the floor. Rocks lay strewn about, as if something dug into the bedrock of the floor.

Riolu pattered over there, awed at the sight. "It's like someone drilled a hole into here with [Dig]... Ah! there are stone steps leading down to the next floor."

"The dungeon works in mysterious ways…", Bidoof panned.

"Is everyone ready to go down? Nayuki, stop fiddling with the Lileep's tentacles and get over here already!"

"Okayyyy, Piplup."

We descended into the darkness.

The next floor we reached was not particularly different from the last, although Bidoof said that some dungeons may change drastically from one level to the next. If there was one feature that struck out to me, it would be the increased amount of water.

Rivulets ran down the walls, entering deeper crevasses, streaming along small ditches. There was even a small pond where we entered. I suppose it would only get worse the farther down, right?

Branching off to the left and right of the new room we entered, were two different tunnels.

"Hm. Anyone have ideas on where we go next?", Riolu asked.

"Gee, they both look the same to me. Should we do majority vote?"

"That's a bit unprofessional, but… Left."

"Right."

"Left."

"Leftttt!"

"It's decided. Onwards, y'all!"

When we traversed through the left path, it quickly became clear that this floor would be much larger than the last one. Noon passed while we were wandering the dimly lit route. The occasional pokemon showed up, but under our newfound leadership, we deftly dispatched it with consecutive blows to the body.

It was only until my stomach started growling that we entered the last room, to find another hole downwards: the staircase.

Bidoof looked at the map he was holding, after tracing out the approximate turns we made. "Heh... we should've taken the right route after all. We went all the way around in a circle!"

"""Haahh…"""

"Just one more lesson to add to the pile… we inevitably make mistakes. Anyhow, by golly, is anyone ready for lunch?"

*growwlll*

We paused for a moment, and everyone started laughing while my face started blushing furiously. _Geez… I want to curl up into a ball right now!_

"It seems like Nayuki wants lunch first," Riolu jested. "A quick stop to recoup then we go on."

We took out from our now slightly bulging packs sets of apples and passed them around.

We then soon traversed into the next floor, and into the next.

"Huh? The walls here are blue.."

"Look at the center of the pond, Piplup. There are luminescent crystals at the bottom!"

"Huh, you're right, Riolu… I bet the moving water is what causes the shifting light on the ceiling and the walls, by golly!"

Indeed… The stones around us were dyed in a resplendent blue, changing tinges as light refracted around the room. _Wow… If only this could be my secret base._

"Let's get going. We have a Pidgey to find." Riolu's voice echoed in my mind, snapping my thoughts.

The floor at this depth was pretty much damp and slick, with many parts just flooded up the paws. The indigenous pokemon also showed up in greater rates, more accustomed to the climate deep underground. Their approaches and the water slowed down our trek as we sought for higher ground, until eventually we found a bird just squawking at a leery Chimecho, claws dug into the side of the wall. We quickly attacked. as fast one could run against the water, and dispatched the pokemon and rescued the Pidgey.

We then relocated on a wide, flat stalagmite, as the Pidgey, whose name was introduced as Pete, was quite averse to water. Heyyy, why did you even make a request in this dungeon, anyway?

Piplup took out the packet of gummis and gave it to him, and using our explorer badges, he was enveloped in a white light, not unlike the effect of an Escape orb.

"Thank you very much for helping me! I'll see you back at the guild with your reward!"

He disappeared, leaving a faint mirage.

We relaxed, and collapsed onto the smooth rock of the stalagmite.

"Haah. That was so exhausting. Is this how all the missions work?"

"Yup. My first mission was searching for a lost orb at the end of Beach Cave… By golly, I was pretty much chased by Kabuto throughout the place with my mentor. Wiped would be the best word to describe it."

"I heard that for normal missions, we often times have to go through twenty floors or worse… But the normal adventurers are so strong they can clear much faster than us."

Riolu's eyes shined. "I think I gained a newfound respect for this profession. Let's work harder from now on!"

"Wait. What about Mr. Delcatty? He hasn't been with us this whole time…"

"He probably left before us. It's not uncommon for mentors to finish monitoring after their proteges have already completed their mission. But that is kind of negligent…"

"Don't worry too much about it, Nayuki, Piplup. We're done and safe, and that's all that matters."

Bidoof nodded in acknowledgment. "Okay. Let's get outta here! I'm starving for dinner!"

We touched our Explorer badges, and were teleported out of the dungeon. When I was aware of my surroundings again, I found myself in a dark room, lit softly by a ring of pulsating, red circles underneath my feet. A permanent summoning circle? Wow...This is some hi-tech stuff. I noticed a gleam at the edge of the space, and reached out for it. It was actually a doorknob, and turning it with my tail I was able to open the door and look out into lit hallway.

Huh? Was this in the bowels of the guild? How did we end up all the way here?

The rooms to the left and right of me clicked, and Riolu and Piplup fell out, a bit dazed. Bidoof followed, a little more poised, as he likely had previously experienced the teleport. He looked at me, and smirked.

"This is the lowest sub-level, D. Here are the facilities of the guild, including that of the teleportation rooms. Here we can get from point B back to base without traveling long distances! However, the guilds have not managed to set up other relay points to port to, so far it is only a one way, one set location for each Explorer badge. This makes it slightly a pain during expeditions, where they become useless unless we are relating news back to HQ.

"Phew. By golly, let's head back up to the bulletin rooms, where the client will be waiting."

"You sure are knowledgeable, huh, Bidoof?"

"It comes as part of the job." He flaunted his shoulders a bit at me with that last statement.

After re-orientating Piplup and Riolu, we went to the second sub-level, where a disheveled Pidgey was preening his feathers. He was also discussing with our mentor previously missing-in-action, Delcatty. Pete waved his wing at us.

"Thank you very much for helping me! For your efforts, I'm giving out Heal Seeds and Poké!" He rummaged in a large bag, and took out two yellow seeds with a waxy cover to each member of the team. He then took out a handful of money, and handed it to our mentor. _Hey, I have a bad feeling about that…_

"Thank you all very much!" Pete then hopped up the staircase and out of sight.

Delcatty then turned around to us, and spoke.

"After observing a long while, I have to say I am impressed with your teamwork and tenacity going through the dungeon. Although I was not explicitly present, it was because I felt that you were adept enough to handle any dangers on your own.

"Now then…"

"We must first divide the loot to the guild!" A squawk interrupted, and rainbow plumage plummeted from above. Chatot!

"Thank you mentor Delcatty for your great performance evaluation. I am pleased that we have such fine recruits this season!" He winked slyly. "Now, as per guild regulations, 90% of the monetary share goes to the guild-" he plucked a large handful of coins and pocketed it, "and the rest is split evenly between your four!"

"The next assignment will also be observed by Mr. Delcatty, so be prepared to work hard ~ tomorrow!"

In the end, we were bamboozled, left with only 100 Poké each. Not even enough for a sack of apples…

I was about to cry. _Unfair! Unfair! Robbery!_ The miserly Kecleon stores in the dungeons that chase after thieves wouldn't compare to Chatot right now…

Me and Riolu parted with a downcast Piplup who was being cheered up by Bidoof, and after being called to dinner, finished the day.

While I laid in bed that night, the only consoling thought in my head was: our first mission is complete...Tomorrow is a new day!


End file.
